It might be a bit early in the cycle but I'm itching to dig into the 2019 draft and see who's might be available when the Giants pick at #10 overall(They finished with the 9'th worst record, but the Braves have a compensatory pick at #9 for not signing Carter Stewart last year). The early trend in this cycle is weak pitching, especially at the college level. The hitting is significantly better and fairly balanced between college and HS but probably a bit deeper at the college level. First up: Adley Rutschman.
Adley Rutschman, C, College(Oregon St). B-S, T-R. 6'2", 215 lbs.
2017: .234/.322/.306, 10.93 BB%, 15.79 K%, 247 PA.
2018: .408/.505/.628, 22 2B, 3 3B, 9 HR, 17.21 BB%, 12.99 K%, 308 PA.
To say he had a breakout season in 2018 is an understatement. As for wood bat experience, he hit just .164 in the Cape Cod League in 2017 but hit .355 for Team USA in 2018 so the breakout carried over into the summer. The reversed K/BB is a strongly positive sign.
Rutschman is a big kid who looks like a catcher with a low center of gravity which gives him a strong base. Scouting reports have him as a plus defensive catcher with a cannon for an arm, soft hands and excellent lateral movements behind the plate. At the plate, he's more of a line-drive hitter who is closer to Buster Posey or Joe Mauer than Joey Bart who profiles as more of a pure power hitter, but the power potential is there for Rutschman.
He's the #2 draft prospect on MLB's board and #1 on Fangraphs. The challenge for him is to resist the pressure to improve on a season that is about as good as it gets. We've seen other college juniors stock fall under that pressure. If his 2019 is anything close to 2018, he'll be off the board long before the Giants pick. I've seen comments that the Giants would not be interested because of Joey Bart, but I disagree. You take the best player available regardless of organizational need. Having 2 future all star catchers in the organization is not a bad thing and would eventually work itself out.
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we have a great baseball name in Frankie "Goes to Hollywood" Tostado ... and then we have investment banker or real estate tycoon Adley Rutschman.
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